Bottle with reinforced top portion

ABSTRACT

A bottle includes a top portion and a bottom portion. The top portion includes a shoulder that extends away from a neck of the bottle, and a grip portion. The grip portion is recessed within the top portion of the bottle. The top portion of the bottle includes at least one strengthening element, preferably in the form of a rib or column that may be provided between the upper and lower bell portions, or between the upper bell or shoulder portion and the grip portion. The bottle can be used for hot or cold fill applications.

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional application No.60/663,211, filed Mar. 21, 2005, incorporated herein by reference in itsentirety.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

None.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

FIG. 1 shows a prior art bottle having a generally rectangularconfiguration. This bottle is the subject of U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,575,321and 6,749,075, each incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.While that bottle has enjoyed commercial success and very satisfactorilyperforms its intended functions, there is an ever growing need toimprove such bottles, and to reduce the cost for shipping such bottles.

For example, the bottle shown in FIG. 1 is typically shipped from abeverage packer, e.g., cranberry juice, to the distribution outlets(e.g., grocery store) using conventional cardboard cases each holdingeight bottles, and it is not unusual that five cases are stacked one ontop of the other for a total of 40 bottles. In this case, the lowermostlayer of eight bottles supports the weight of the remaining 32 bottles,each 64 oz. bottle weighing about four lbs, or 32 bottles x 4 lbs each=128 lbs. When the cases are stacked as such, a corrugate (formed fromthe top of a lower case and the adjacent bottom of an upper case) isprovided between each layer, for added load bearing, as each bottle hasa top loading capacity of about 45 lbs.

In addition, the top portion of the bottle shown in FIG. 1 is designedto receive an auxiliary (adhesive) label in the grip area, as describedin U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,575,321 and 6,749,075. The label is applied duringof after the bottling process in which the bottle is held firmly by thetop and bottom ends. Because the contained beverage is pasteurized, theside walls of the container are subject to vacuum deformation which inpart is dealt with by providing the bottle with vacuum accommodatingsections such as vacuum panels on the bottom portion of the container,or auxiliary vacuum deformation portions that may be located in the gripportion, the base portion and/or other portions of the bottle. Anyvacuum deformation in the top part of the bottle where the label is tobe applied can compromise the positioning and/or registration of thelabel.

U.S. Patent Publication No. US 2001/0037992 discloses a bottle withreinforcing ribs around the bottle waist. However, that bottle does notrelate to a rectangular bottle or ones where reinforcement is placed atthe top portion of the bottle, e.g., where the shoulder and/or bellstructure is located.

Thus, a need has developed in the bottling art to provide address one ormore of these challenges.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

One aspect of the present invention relates to a bottle having areinforced top portion, e.g., on a rectangular bottle.

Another aspect relates to reducing the amount of corrugate cardboardcasing used to ship containers, e.g., by eliminating the top cover ofthe case.

Another aspect of the present invention relates to a hot-fillable orcold-fillable plastic bottle, comprising a body portion having a topportion and a bottom portion, the top portion including a shoulder, agrip portion below the shoulder and at least one protruding reinforcingelement positioned between the shoulder and the grip portion.

In exemplary embodiments, the reinforcing element comprises a column.The column may have a length and a narrow middle section that tapers torelatively wider upper and/or lower portions, the length is about 0.5 to1.2 inches (about 12 to 30 mm), the narrow middle section has a width ofabout 0.3 to 0.8 inches (about 7.5 to 20 mm), and the upper and/or lowerportions have a width of about 0.6 to 1.1 inches (about 15 to 28 mm),.e.g., the length is about 0.710 inches (about 18 mm), the width of thenarrow section is about 0.585 inches (about 15 mm), and the width of theupper and/or lower portions is about 0.875 inches (about 22 mm). Thecolumn may protrude away from the top portion in the range of about0.010 to 0.250 inches (about 0.25 to 6.4 mm), e.g., the protrusion depthis about 0.080 inches (about 2 mm).

The top portion may be generally polygonal shaped and the top portion ofthe bottle may include one said column centered on each side of the topportion. The top portion may include one said column provided on eachcorner of the top portion. The bottle may be generally square orrectangular.

The top portion may includes a bell section including an upper bellportion generally coincident with the shoulder and a lower bell portion,the upper and lower bell portions defining a valley therebetween, thecolumn extending across at least a portion of the valley from the upperbell portion to the lower bell portion. Otherwise, the column may extendbetween the grip portion and the shoulder or upper bell portion.

These and other aspects will be described in or apparent from thefollowing description of preferred embodiments.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view from the top, front side of a prior artbottle;

FIG. 2 is a front elevation view of a bottle according to one preferredembodiment of the present invention, the rear view thereof beingidentical thereto;

FIG. 3 is a left side view of the bottle shown in FIG. 2, with theopposite view thereof being identical thereto;

FIG. 4 is a top view of the bottle shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is the bottom view of the bottle shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is a cross sectional view taken along line 6-6 in FIG. 2;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the bottle shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a round bottle according to analternative embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 9-9 of FIG. 8.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

FIGS. 2-7 show one preferred embodiment of the present invention. In thefigures, reference number 10 designates a plastic container, e.g. apolyethylene terephthalate (PET), hot-fillable or cold-fillable beveragecontainer.

The container 10 includes a neck 30 and a body portion 40 that extendsaway from the neck 30. The neck 30 may be crystallized to have asubstantially opaque appearance, as is well known in the art. However,it is not necessary to provide a crystallized neck. The body portion 40includes a top portion 45 and a bottom portion 50, which in theexemplary embodiment has a vacuum panel section that is shorter than thetop portion 45. A base portion 25 is provided below the vacuum panelsection.

The container 10 is manufactured, for example, using a blow-moldingprocess which is well known. During blow-molding, a preform (not shown)is expanded and assumes the shape of an interior molding surface, i.e.,a mold (not shown), to form a substantially transparent,biaxially-oriented container. The neck 30 of the preform is not expandedand remains as the neck 30 of the container 10. The neck 30 includesthreads and an open mouth 35 for receiving a screw-on cap (not shown).The lower portion of the preform is expanded to form the body portion 40of the container 10, including the top portion 45 and the bottom portion50.

The bottom portion 50 of the container 10, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3,includes a panel section having a plurality of vacuum deformationportions, e.g., in the form of panels 55. Each panel section 55 may berecessed into the bottom portion 1-5 mm or more, which is represented byan increasing depth border 55.1 surrounding each vacuum panel 55.

The base 25 is provided below the vacuum panels 55. For example, each ofthe longer sides 15 and shorter sides 20 of the container 10 includes avacuum panel 55. The vacuum panels 55 accommodate internal forcestending to collapse the vacuum panel 55 inwardly due to filling thecontainer 10 with a liquid at an elevated temperature, e.g., apasteurization temperature. After the container 10 is hot-filled andcapped, cooling of the liquid tends to collapse the vacuum panels 55.

While this example relates to hot-fill applications, it is alsocontemplated that the container 10 can be used in cold-fillapplications. For example, the container can be made using an asepticcold-fill line.

Each vacuum panel 55 may include at least one, e.g., four, lateralstiffening ribs 56 to add rigidity, e.g., to prevent more than a certainamount of deformation of the vacuum panels 55. The vacuum panels 55 onthe shorter sides 15 generally accommodate a lesser amount of theinternal forces as compared to the vacuum panels on the larger sides 20.

Further, the bottom portion 50 of the container 10 is adapted to receivea label 61 (FIG. 3) which is wrapped, e.g., shrink-wrapped, around thevacuum panels 55. For example, the label 61 (only a portion is shown)wraps about the entire perimeter of the container 10. The label 61 ispositioned below a transition shoulder 54 between the top and bottomportions 45, 50 of the body portion 40. A lower transition shoulder 54.1defines a lowermost boundary of the label 61. The label 61 could includeone or more separate parts to be individually applied to only one ormore of the longer and shorter sides.

Bottle 10 includes a shoulder 60 and a grip portion 65 provided belowshoulder 60. The grip portion 65 is inwardly recessed into the bodyportion 40. For example, the grip portions 65 on opposite sides of thecontainer 10 are spaced a distance that is less than the width of thetop portion of the container. Preferably, each grip portion 65 isrecessed a depth Dg which is about 1-20 mm or more, and preferably,about 5-15 mm into the body portion 40, as shown in FIG. 3. Inembodiments, the depth Dg may be only a few millimeters, e.g., 1-5 mm.As a result, the border of each grip portion 65 includes a ledge 66(FIG. 2) that improves gripability. Preferably, the ledge substantiallysurrounds the entire grip portion 65, although it is possible that lessthan the entire perimeter of the grip portion 65 includes the ledge. Forexample, the ledge may be limited to just the lateral (left and right)sides or one lateral or vertical side of the grip portion 65, where theuser grips the container 10. The grip portion 65 may have a very shallowdepth (e.g. 1-5 mm) on the lateral sides 66.1 and the upper side 66.2,and increased depth (2-7 mm) on the lower side 66.3. Further, althoughthe grip portion 65 is shown as generally oval shaped, it can take theform of other shapes such as circles, diamonds, rectangles or othergeometric shapes.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, bottle 10 includes one or more reinforcingelements 100. Each reinforcing element may be in the form of a rib, or acolumn 102 that protrudes outwardly away from the remaining portions ofthe bottle 10. In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the bottle 10includes one column 102 on each of the shorter and longer sides of thetop portion 45. Preferably, each column is centered on each of theshorter and longer sides of bottle 10. In addition, at least one andpreferably all corners of the bottle 10 may include a column, as bestshown in the cross-sectional view in FIG. 6.

As best shown in FIG. 3, each column 102 has sides 104 that aregenerally curved or crescent shaped, such that the column has a narrowwaist portion 106 and flared top 108 and/or bottom portions 110. Eachcolumn has a length of about 0.5 to 1.2 inches (about 12 to 30 mm), orabout 0.710″ (about 18 mm), about 0.3 to 0.8″ (about 7 to 20 mm), orabout 0.585″ (about 15 mm) wide at the center tapering out to about 0.6to 1.1″ (about 15 to 28 mm), or about 0.875″ (about 22 mm) as it blendsinto the geometry of the bottle on the top and bottom of the column.

In an alternative, each column 102 can also have a generally linearprofile, with linear sides, or the column can be tapered, where it iswide at the upper or lower end and narrows towards the other end. Eachcolumn 102 is associated with lateral transition portions 112 that jointhe column 102, which protrudes, to the adjacent lateral surfaces 114 ofthe bottle 10. Surfaces 114 are recessed in comparison to the protrudingcolumns 102.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 6-6 of FIG. 2, showinghalf of the bottle 10. A dotted line 130 represents the correspondingcross section in the prior art bottle of FIG. 1. The depth of eachcolumn, or the amount is protrudes from the dotted line 130, is about0.080″ (about 2 mm). This and the other dimensions of the column can bevaried depending on the bottle's configuration and geometry. While thecolumns on the corners are generally rounded, the columns on each sideare slightly generally planar in the horizontal plane. Each column inthe corners has a radius of curvature that is less than about 6 to 10mm, and preferably is less than about 12 mm, for a rectangular bottle.As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the columns may be slightly concave or planarin the vertical plane.

Moreover, while the bottle shown in FIGS. 2-6 includes 8 columns, it ispossible to have more or less, depending on application. However, it ispreferable that the number of columns be balanced so that the stabilityand top loading capacity remains evenly distributed, e.g., thestrengthening elements should be symmetrically positioned, although theycould be asymmetrically oriented and still maintain even loaddistribution characteristics. In one embodiment, the bottle could havefrom as few as 2 columns on opposite sides to as many as 14 or more(provided that they are thinner −0.125″ (about 3.2 mm) wide at thecenter). Each column/element should preferably blend in with the bottlesgeneral geometry.

The column thickness (depth) could range from the preferred thickness(0.080″ (about 2 mm)) to a range of 0.010″ up to 0.250″ (about 0.25 to6.4 mm). Again this could be larger or smaller than the exemplary 64 oz.bottle, depending on the geometry, e.g. for bottles with larger orsmaller liquid volume capacities, e.g., 4 oz to 8 oz or gallon, etc.

The reinforcing elements 100 are preferably provided in the top portion45 of the bottle 10, where the “bell” section is located. Specifically,the top portion 45 includes an upper bell portion that generallycoincides with the shoulder 60 in FIG. 1, and a lower bell portion 60.1.The reinforcing elements 100 are positioned generally between the upperand lower bell portions 60, 60.1, and can be thought of as a bridgespanning at least a portion of if not the entire valley (or bell waist)which is between the upper and lower bell portions. Each element 100 canbridge or connect the peaks of each bell portion, or the bridge canconnect the bell portions along intermediate portions of the adjacentwalls that form the valley/waist between the peaks of the bell portions.For example, the elements 100 can extend from the mid section 118 of awall forming a lower portion of the upper bell portion 60 to the midsection 120 of a wall forming the upper portion of the lower bellportion 60.1. The elements 100 can extend above and or below the peaksof the bell portions as well. Moreover, the elements can be positionedin other locations on the bottle as well. Further, the elements 100 onthe longer side of the bottle define a surface 122 that may be coplanaror in a plane that is parallel to the plane defined by the surfaces 124of the grip portions 165. See. e.g., FIG. 3.

Where the top portion 45 includes only the upper bell or shoulderportion 60, the reinforcing element 100 can be positioned between thegrip portion 65 and the upper bell or shoulder portion 60. Thereinforcing elements 100 could also be positioned anywhere below theshoulder portion 60, including below the grip portion 65.

The top loading capacity of the overall container ranges from about50-150 lbs, and preferably the range is between about 75-125 lbs., andmost preferably about 100 lbs. This is an advantage from the standpointof shipping. Due to the increased top loading capacity, it is possibleto eliminate or reduce the amount of corrugate that is placed betweenlayers of bottles to be shipped. In addition, the increased top loadingcapacity adds stability to the bottle during thebottling/packing/labeling process, such that placement of labels can bemore accurately registered.

Bottle 10 may have overall dimensions as described in U.S. Pat. Nos.6,575,321 and 6,749,075, each incorporated herein by reference in itsentirety. The dimensions of the bottle were selected to conveniently andefficiently fit on the shelves of a supermarket, in a space conservingmanner. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, bottle 10 is substantiallyrectangular, for example, and includes longer sides 15 each having awidth of about, e.g., 115 millimeters, and shorter sides 20 having awidth of about, e.g., 90 millimeters. The dimensions bottle 10 can fitwithin the door shelf of a refrigerator. A base portion 25 (best shownin FIG. 2) of the container 10 has a width that is slightly greater thanthe widths of the sides 15, 20 of the container 10. ProvisionalApplication Ser. No. 60/262,641, incorporated herein by reference, showsadditional exemplary dimensions of bottle 10. In this particularembodiment, bottle 10 has a volume capacity of about 64 oz. Those ofordinary skill in the art would appreciate that aspects of the presentinvention are applicable to other containers, such as round or polygonshaped, e.g., square, pentagon, hexagon, septagon, octagon, etc.,bottles, which may have different dimensions and volume capacities. FIG.8 shows a round bottle 10′ with reinforcing elements 100′, e.g. columns.FIG. 9 is a cross section taken along section 9-9 of FIG. 8. It is alsocontemplated that other modifications can be made depending on thespecific application and environmental requirements.

The grip portion 65 has a height that is about one quarter to about onehalf, and preferably one third, of a height of the top portion 45 of thebody portion 40. The grip portion 65 is adapted to be grasped by thefingers and thumb of a person of average size, for example, an averagewoman having a size 7 hand. For example, as shown in FIG. 3, thedistance between the grip portions 65 is about 83 mm or less, althoughthe distance can range from about 75 to about 90 mm or more. However,the grip portion 65 is not limited for use by a person having averagesize hands. In this context, the width of the grip portion 65 isdesigned to be about 50-90% of the width of the container side wall onwhich it is placed. Preferably, the width is 60-80% (or more or less),and most preferably the width is about 70% of the width of the sidewall. By selecting and structuring the height, width and depth of thegrip portions 65 using the above dimensions, user comfort is enhanced, agood hand-fit is achieved, and the grip portions 65 can be manipulatedby a persons having a wide variety of hand sizes.

The grip portion 65 is provided near the center of gravity of thecontainer 10, as described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,575,321 and 6,749,075.Thus, positioning of the grip portions 65 facilitates holding of andpouring liquid contents from the container 10.

Further, the grip portion 65 may also serve as a logo/label portion 70.As shown, each grip portion 65, may include a logo, such as “OceanSpray®” and/or the Ocean Spray® “wave”. The logo may include ananti-slip surface in the form of raised or embossed (depressed)lettering, logos, characters or other designs, which helps prevent thecontainer 10 from slipping out of the user's fingers and thumb. Further,in addition to or instead of using integrally formed lettering, designsor logos, the logo may be in the form of a label that is applied, e.g.,using an adhesive, to the grip portion 65. Stated differently, the gripportion 65 may also form an auxiliary label portion, which may becoordinated with the wrap-around label provided on the bottom portion ofthe container 10. If an integrally formed logo is used with the label,then it is recommended that the integral logo be embossed into the gripportion, rather than being raised, so as to present a more flat surfaceto which the label may be secured. Because of the increased size of thegrip portion, the logo can be more prominently displayed on the bottle10.

Because of the relatively large size of the logo, the top portion 45 ofthe bottle 10 can be longer than the bottom portion 50 of bottle 10,where the vacuum panels 55 are positioned. Thus, the vacuum panels 55may not be sufficient to compensate for the amount of internal vacuumforces that tend to collapse the vacuum panels 55 during the hot-fillprocess. As such, other portions of the container, such as the base 25or the top portion 45 of the container, e.g., grip portion 65, may bedesigned to act as an auxiliary vacuum portion or panel by flexinginwardly during cooling and volumetric shrinkage to accommodate some orall additional internal vacuum forces that are not accommodated by thevacuum panels 55 in the bottom portion 50 of the container 10.

The grip portion 65 is positioned, e.g., along the longer sides 15 ofbottle 10. The shorter sides 20 of bottle 10 include a waist portion 75that is positioned laterally adjacent the grip portion 65 and logo/labelportion 70. Each of the shorter sides 20 may include at least onelateral stiffening rib 80 positioned within the waist portion 75. Therib 80 serves to prevent excessive deformation of the auxiliary vacuumpanel during the hot-fill process. The rib 80 is configured slightlydifferently than the ribs 56.

The base portion 25 of the container 10 has a dome-shaped portion 85which increases strength of the container 10 and facilitates themanufacturing process. The configuration and shape of the dome-shapedportion 85 may also help assist in the on for internal forces createdduring the hot-fill process, as is known in the art.

While the invention has been described in connection with what arepresently considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiments,it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited to thedisclosed embodiments, but on the contrary, is intended to cover variousmodifications and equivalent arrangements included within the spirit andscope of the invention. For example, while an exemplary hot-fillablecontainer has been described, the disclosure is not limited to such andnon-hot-fillable containers are also possible in which event vacuumpanels would not be required. In addition, while PET containers madeusing a blow-molding process have been described, other materials andmanufacturing processes are also possible. For example, the containercan be made using extrusion molding or other stretch molding techniques,and the container could be made from materials such as, for example,polypropylene, high density polypropylene, polyolefin, styrene and othersimilar plastic materials.

1. A plastic bottle, comprising: a body portion having a top portion anda bottom portion, the top portion including a shoulder, a grip portionbelow the shoulder and at least one protruding reinforcing elementpositioned between the shoulder and the grip portion.
 2. The bottleaccording to claim 1, wherein the reinforcing element comprises acolumn.
 3. The bottle according to claim 2, wherein the column has alength and a narrow middle section that tapers to relatively wider upperand/or lower portions.
 4. The bottle according to claim 3, wherein thelength is about 0.5 to 1.2 inches, the narrow middle section has a widthof about 0.3 to 0.8 inches, and the upper and/or lower portions have awidth of about 0.6 to 1.1 inches.
 5. The bottle according to claim 4,wherein the length is about 0.710 inches, the width of the narrowsection is about 0.585 inches, and the width of the upper and/or lowerportions is about 0.875 inches.
 6. The bottle according to claim 1,wherein the column protrudes away from the top portion in the range ofabout 0.010 to 0.250 inches.
 7. The bottle according to claim 6, whereinthe depth is about 0.080 inches.
 8. The bottle according to claim 2,wherein the top portion is generally polygonal shaped and the topportion of the bottle includes one said column centered on each side ofthe top portion.
 9. The bottle according to claim 8, wherein the topportion includes one said column provided on each corner of the topportion.
 10. The bottle according to claim 8, wherein the bottle isgenerally square or rectangular.
 11. The bottle according to claim 1,wherein the bottle has a top loading capacity of about 50 to 150 lbs.12. The bottle according to claim 11, wherein the capacity is about 100lbs.
 13. The bottle according to claim 1, wherein the top portionincludes a bell section including an upper bell portion generallycoincident with the shoulder and a lower bell portion, the upper andlower bell portions defining a valley therebetween, the column extendingacross at least a portion of the valley from the upper bell portion tothe lower bell portion.
 14. The bottle according to claim 1, wherein:the grip portion is inwardly recessed into the body portion and a ledgeis provided along at least one lateral extreme of the grip portion dueto inward recessing of the grip portion, wherein the ledge connects therecessed grip portion with non-recessed wall portions of the top portionof the body portion adjacent the grip portion, the grip portion definingat least one first vacuum panel, and the bottom portion includes aplurality of second vacuum panels and a base portion below the pluralityof second vacuum panels, each of said plurality of said vacuum panelshaving a deformation capability that is different than a deformationcapability of the at least one first vacuum panel.
 15. The bottleaccording to claim 14, further comprising a plurality of lateral ribspositioned within each of the second vacuum panels.
 16. The bottleaccording to claim 14, further comprising at least one lateral ribprovided on the top portion of the body portion and laterally adjacentthe at least one first vacuum panel.
 17. The bottle according to claim14, wherein the deformation capability of the at least one first vacuumpanel is less than the deformation capability of each of the secondvacuum panels.
 18. The bottle according to claim 14, wherein the bottleis substantially rectangular and defines two longer sides and twoshorter sides, each of the longer sides having said at least one firstvacuum panel, and each of the shorter sides including at least onehorizontal rib provided on the upper portion of the body portion andlaterally adjacent each said at least one first vacuum panel.
 19. Thebottle according to claim 14, further comprising a waist portion thatextends into the body portion, the grip portion and the at least onefirst vacuum panel being provided laterally adjacent the waist portion.20. The bottle according to claim 19, further comprising at least onelateral rib provided in the waist portion.
 21. The bottle according toclaim 14, wherein the at least one first vacuum panel provided in thegrip portion defines an integral logo portion having a logo.
 22. Thebottle according to claim 21, wherein the logo includes raised letteringthat serves as an anti-slip surface.
 23. The bottle according to claim21, wherein the logo portion has a height that is about one quarter toabout one-half of a height of the top portion.
 24. The bottle accordingto claim 1, wherein the bottom portion includes a wrap-around label. 25.The bottle according to claim 1, wherein the grip portion defines a logoportion adapted to receive an auxiliary label.
 26. The bottle accordingto claim 14, wherein the ledge substantially circumscribes the gripportion.
 27. The bottle according to claim 1, wherein a cross-sectionalshape of the body portion and a base portion is substantiallyrectangular along substantially an entire axial extent thereof.
 28. Thebottle according to claim 1, wherein a center of gravity of the bottleis positioned in a region of the body portion spanning a transitionbetween the top and the bottom portions.
 29. The bottle according toclaim 1, wherein the bottle is hot-fillable.
 30. The bottle according toclaim 1, wherein the bottle is cold-fillable.
 31. A method for fillingthe bottle according to claim 1 with product using a cold-fill process.32. A method for filling the bottle according to claim 1 with productusing a hot-fill process.
 33. A hot-fillable PET plastic bottle,comprising: a body portion having a top portion and a bottom portioneach defining a pair of opposed relatively longer walls and a pair ofopposed relatively shorter walls, the body portion including roundedcorner portions connecting the relatively longer and shorter walls, thetop portion including a shoulder, a pair of opposed grip portions belowthe shoulder and inwardly recessed with respect to the relatively longerwalls of the top portion, the top portion including protrudingreinforcing elements provided to each corner, the bottom portionincludes a plurality of vacuum panels and a base portion below theplurality of vacuum panels, the base portion including a pair of opposedrelatively shorter walls and a pair of opposed relatively longer wallcorresponding, respectively, to the relatively shorter and longer wallsof the body portion, each of the vacuum panels being structured toaccommodate internal forces tending to collapse the vacuum panelsinwardly due to filling of the bottle with a liquid at an elevatedtemperature and subsequent cooling of the liquid.
 34. The hot-fillablebottle according to claim 33, wherein each of the grip portions definesan auxiliary vacuum panel having a deformation capacity that is lessthan a deformation capacity of the vacuum panels in the bottom portion.35. The hot-fillable bottle according to claim 33, wherein across-sectional shape of at least the body portion is substantiallyrectangular along an entire axial extent thereof.
 36. The hot-fillablebottle according to claim 33, wherein each said grip portion isgenerally oval shaped.
 37. The hot-fillable bottle according to claim36, wherein each said grip portion is recessed about 1-20 mm into thetop portion.
 38. The hot-fillable bottle according to claim 37, whereineach said grip portion is recessed about 5 mm into the top portion. 39.The hot-fillable bottle according to claim 37, wherein a distancebetween the grip portions is about 75-90 mm.
 40. A hot-fillable PETplastic bottle, comprising: a body portion having a top portion and abottom portion, at least the top portion having a generally polygonalcross-section with generally flat panel sections joined by roundedcorner portions, the top portion including a shoulder, a pair of opposedgrip portions below the shoulder and inwardly recessed up to about 1-20mm with respect to the relatively longer walls of the top portion, and acolumn shaped reinforcement element provided for each of said roundedcorner portions, the bottom portion including a plurality of vacuumpanels and a base portion below the plurality of vacuum panels, each ofthe vacuum panels being structured to accommodate internal forcestending to collapse the vacuum panels inwardly due to filling of thebottle with a liquid at an elevated temperature and subsequent coolingof the liquid.